Happy 4th of July 2025!

 Happy 4th of July 2025!

"Land of the free and home of the brave"

"Celebrate freedom and embrace liberty"

Comments off, enjoy your day!

Happy Monday!

Wishing everyone a great day and a happy new week!

"Every day is a chance to be better."

Iceland 2019, cattle farm

"It's never too late for a new beginning in your life."

"We take photos as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone."

Comments off, enjoy your day!

Saturday's Critters # 602

  Welcome to Saturday's Critters! Hello and Happy Saturday!

 If you love all God's creatures like I do and also like to blog about them and take critter photos this is where you can share your critter post. Link up your post and share your critters, join in with my critter party ! You can share any kind of critters the real ones, pretend ones, statues and paintings, a new or old post!

A mish-mash on daily walks and outings with our dog Miney, birdwatching from my backyard or on the Prettyboy Fire Roads.

Click on images for better viewing.

1. May 9th, seeing the bluebirds in my yard this season just makes me happy. I hope to see their babies!  

"The bluebird carries the sky on his back."

The bluebird is a symbol of hope, happiness and joy.

2. May 10th, in the backyard a Bluebird and a Mourning Dove are having a conversation.  

3. May 10, we took our walk on another local fire road, wildflowers Fleabane and I am not sure what the tiny yellow wildflowers are called. 

My May 10th Merlin app birds heard on our walk on the Prettyboy fire road. 

I am hearing the Great-crested Flycatcher calling while on our walks and from my bird yard.  They are brownish upper parts and yellowish underparts and a bushy crest.

4. May 11th, Some blooms from our yard, the Columbine, Siberian Iris, Bluebird sitting in Pine tree and I am not sure if the plant bottom right is called Spiderwort?

Images from our fire road walk are of Miney, Bigleaf Magnolia bloom, and one of the Pink Lady Slippers.

May 11th backyard birds captured by my Merlin app.

The House Wren is one of my loudest yard birds, a small bird only a little over 4 inches. This wren is brown with pale to white underparts.

5. May 12th, my backyard we have the Siberian Irises blooming, I saw a cute bunny, our Rhododendrons are looking beautiful. 

6. May 12th, the Worm-eating Warbler is a drab looking warbler with black and buffy stripes on its head. I have been hearing this bird calling from off the local fire road when I am walking Miney.

My May12th Merlin App birds heard on our walk at Prettyboy.

7. May 12th, I see and hear the Blue Jays in my yard and often on the fire road while we are out walking Miney.  

8. Flashback from last year May 2024, the Scarlet Tanagers have returned to Prettyboy Watershed and my back yard. The male Scarlet Tanager is a lovely color red with dark wings. During mating/breeding season I hear these birds singing while I am out walking Miney on our local fire roads. 

Another Flashback to Aug 2023, a beautiful closeup of the Scarlet Tanager on the trail at Shenandoah Nat'l Park. 

Bonus, July 3rd  is my granddaughter Sophie's 1st birthday.. HAPPY BIRTHDAY to our sweet Sophie. 

I am linking up to Heidrun's Mosaic Monday   I hope you can stop by and visit Heidrun and check out the Mosaic Monday post.

Thanks to all my visitors and for your past and present comments. Stop back to see any replies to your comments. I appreciate everyone who loves and respects wildlife. Thank you for linking up a critter post.

Check out  Catblogosphere.com

Here is my linky:

Thank you for sharing your critters and post! 

Happy Monday!

 Wishing everyone a great day and a happy new week!

"An early morning walk is a blessing for the whole day."

Trail in Glendalough, Ireland May 2023.

"In every walk with nature, one receives far more than he seeks."

"We take photos as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone."

Comments off, enjoy your day!

Saturday's Critters # 601

Welcome to Saturday's Critters! Hello and Happy Saturday!

 If you love all God's creatures like I do and also like to blog about them and take critter photos this is where you can share your critter post. Link up your post and share your critters, join in with my critter party ! You can share any kind of critters the real ones, pretend ones, statues and paintings, a new or old post!

Happy Summer everyone! Our first week of summer is supposed to be really hot and humid.

My critter post is a mish mash of birds and of course our dog Miney, there may be a bonus image thrown in and some flashback photos.

Click on images for better viewing.

"My favorite weather is bird chirping weather."

1. May 3rd, the Peacock was sitting in a tree in the back part of our yard.  

I took Miney for a walk on the local fire road.  

A bonus image from our visit and lunch with our son and family, it is always a joy to spend time with our grandchildren. They are growing so fast. 

2. May 5th, we took Miney for a walk along George's Creek. 

Foraging among the rocks in the creek, I found two Sandpipers, the Spotted Sandpiper and possibly a Solitary Sandpiper on the top row. 

On a parking lot near the boat dock I found a family of Canada Geese, the gosling is adorable. 

3. May 6th,  We walked on a different section of the NCR trail, I captured an Indigo Bunting in awful lighting. It is was nice to see some wildflowers and the wild azaleas blooming. 

My Merlin app for our walk on the NCR trail, I heard a lot of great birds some new summer birds have returned. Most of the birds listed are either breeders in our area or they are moving through, more north of us. 

Most of these bird sounds I can recognize before the app announces them. On the list below is a winter bird in our area the Brown Creeper, maybe he has not headed north yet? 

I have have become better at iding the Baltimore Oriole sounds and have been hearing them on every one of our walks lately. 

4. May 7th, another walk with Miney to the front section of the lake. I saw three Double-crested Cormorants, I heard more birds than I actually saw. I did get a glimpse of an Osprey flying away. 

5. May 8th, below on the top row is the Gray Catbird and the Eastern Bluebird in my yard. The rhododendron is growing next to our house and driveway. It has lots of beautiful blooms.

6. May 8th, we enjoy our walks with Miney on this day we took a walk to the lake. I am into a routine of using the Merlin App to see what birds are around my area. 

7. May 8th, below are two larger images of the Eastern Wood Pewee and the Scarlet Tanager. 

The female Scarlet Tanager is lovely, she is yellow-greenish with dark wings.  They usually stay high in the tree canopy. We are lucky to have these beautiful birds breed in the forest around our home. 

8. Flashback June 2019,  I miss the Great Blue Herons nesting in our little Prettyboy Neighborhood. 

The Heron's nest were in trees across from our driveway, I could stand on my deck and watch the herons and their chick in the nest. 

I am linking up to Heidrun's Mosaic Monday   I hope you can stop by and visit Heidrun and check out the Mosaic Monday post.

Thanks to all my visitors and for your past and present comments. Stop back to see any replies to your comments. I appreciate everyone who loves and respects wildlife. Thank you for linking up a critter post.

Check out  Catblogosphere.com

Here is my linky:

Thank you for sharing your critters and post!